Article of jewelry having changeable ornamental stone

ABSTRACT

AN ARTICLE OF JEWELRY HAVING A MOUNTING IN WHICH IS FASTENED AN OVAL MEMBER TO HOLD A REMOVABLE ORNAMENTAL STONE. THE STONE IS HELD IN PLACE BY A SECOND OVAL MEMBER FITTED WITHIN SAID FIRST OVAL MEMBER AND INCLUDING A HINGED CONNECTION TO MAINTAIN THE MEMBERS ASSOCIATED WHILE THE STONE IS BEING CHANGED.

March 9, 1971 B. F. ELLISON 3,568,467

I ARTICLE OF JEWELRY HAVING CHANGEABLE ORNAMENTAL STONE Filed Aug. 21,1968 MEMBER I6 #150 Mam/mam IN AN [ARR/N6, I6 NECKLACE,

moor/1 AND CUFF U/VK INVENTOR. Bernice F. Ellison ATTORNEY.

3,568,467 ARTICLE OF JEWELRY HAVING CHANGEABLE ORNAMENTAL STONE BerniceF. Ellison, 11 Aspen Road, New Rochelle, N.Y. 10804 Filed Aug. 21, 1968,Ser. No. 766,014 Int. Cl. A44c 17/02 U.S. Cl. 6329 3 Claims ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE An article of jewelry having a mounting in which isfastened an oval member to hold a removable ornamental stone. The stoneis held in place by a second oval member fitted within said first ovalmember and including a hinged connection to maintain the membersassociated while the stone is being changed.

BRIEF SUMMARY This invention relates to jewelry and is particularlyconcerned with an article of jewelry having a replaceable ornamentalelement.

Replacement of the ornamental element or stone is most desirable injewelry as differently colored stones can then be selected for difierentarrangements. Also the changes of the stones gives an effect that thewearer owns many different pieces of jewelry.

It has been known in the prior art to provide an article of jewelry suchas a finger ring with an ornamental stone that can be removed. However,such removal and possible replacement by another ornamental stone hasbeen difficult and generally had to be effected by a jewelry expert.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an article ofjewelry wherein an ornamental stone can be easily removed and replacedby a different ornamental stone.

It is another object of the invention to provide an article of jewelryhaving a replaceable stone wherein all elements of the article remainattached together during the replacement.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a plurality ofarticles of jewelry that can be used simultaneously in a plurality ofapplications with matching ornamental elements.

It is a still further object of the invention to provide an article ofjewelry that can be easily disassembled by the wearer to replace theornamental element and give the appearance of a permanent installationwhen worn.

These and other objects will be apparent from the following descriptionwhen read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view of an article ofjewelry embodying the drawing;

FIG. 2 is a section view through lines 22 of FIG. 1 turned 90 showingthe elements of the invention enlarged over the FIG. 1 showing;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a mounting member of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a side view of another mounting member of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the article shown in FIG. 1 with the mountingshown in open position and the ornamental stone removed;

FIG. 6 is a modification of the article of jewelry utilized with anearring and a necklace;

FIG. 7 is another modification of the article of jewelry utilized with ashoe.

nited States Patent DETAILED DESCRIPTION In FIG. 1 the article ofjewelry is a finger ring 10 that is conventional in general appearance.An ornamental stone 12 is positioned in mounting 14 by means of a firstoval shaped member 16.

As more clearly shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, member 16 is a thin oval bandhaving an opening 18 and being permanently fixed in mounting I4.Ornamental stone 12 is shown as being oval shaped as approximately halfan ellipsoid so as to partially fit through member 16, but the inventionis not to be considered so limited. Different shaped stones can befitted within correspondingly shaped members in the article of jewelryas long as a fitting relationship is established. In the preferredembodiment illustrated the ornamental stone 12 has a smooth shape withits largest periphery greater in size than band 16 so that most but notall of stone 12 when inserted from the inside of ring 10 will projectthrough opening 18.

Oval band 16 includes end portions 20 and 22. Oval band 16 also includesa front edge 24, which is in contact with stone 12 as shown in FIG. 1,and a rear edge 26. A groove 28 is formed in the inner surface of ovalband 16 in edge portion 20 and adjacent edge 26. At the other endportion 22 a slot 30 is cut through band 16 adjacent edge 26.

A second oval shaped member 32 is provided to fit within first ovalmember 16. While first member 16 has a fairly substantial depth as shownin FIG. 1, second member 32 is considerably smaller in depth, as shownin FIGS. 4 and 5, and is approximately one-quarter the depth of member16. Second member 32 is also in the shape of an oval band and has endportions 34 and 36. Along each side portion of oval band 32 a slot 38 isformed therein, each slot 38 being generally in the middle of band 32and diametrically opposite the other slot 38.

Band 32 fits closely within band 16, and end portion 34 includes a tabor protuberance 40 that projects outwardly along the longitudinal lineof band 32. When band 32 is fitted within band 16, tab 40 is forced intogroove 28 to lock the bands together. End portion 36 of band 32 includesa tongue 42 that is bent around in a loop through slot 30 in band 16.Looped tongue 42 thereby forms a hinge permanently connecting bands 16and 32 together when they are in juxtaposition as shown in FIG. 2.

Within the oval band 32 is mounted a tension means 44. Means 44 is aplan view as shown in FIG. 2 takes the form of an oval so as to closelyfit within oval band 32. This fitting is clearly seen in FIG. 2, and asseen in FIG. 4 oval 44 has a depth that is less than oval band 32. At anintermediate area along each side portion of oval 44 projecting tabs 46are formed, one on each side diametrically opposite each other. Thesetabs 46 project outwardly to fit respectively into slots 38 so that oval44 and oval band 32 become an integral member as shown in FIG. 4. Thefit is a close one so the members will stay integral, and the tabs 46can be force fit or soldered to maintain the integration.

The side portions of oval 44 at their intermediate area each comprise afiat section 48 on either side as shown in FIG. 2. Each fiat section 48is in alignment with and attached to the tongue 46 so that from a sideview, as seen in FIG. 4, the tongues 46 and flat sections 48 are alignedwithin oval band 32. Extending from the fiat sections 48 the adjacentpart of the oval 44 projects outwardly in identical arced sections 50 ina direction toward the front of the ring when the oval bands 16 and 32are locked together, and the remainder of the oval 44 forms identicalend sections 52 that extend in parallel alignment with band 32 butspaced therefrom. The sections 50 and 52 have an outer peripheral ovalshape that is of a smaller size than the inner peripheral oval shape ofband 32, and it will be seen from FIG. 2 that a gap 54 is formedtherebetween at either end. Sections 50 and 52 are formed of resilientmetal and will exert a biasing action when they are pressed against theback of stone 12 as the oval bands 16 and 32 are locked together. Thisresilient compression of tension means 44 keeps stone 12 tightly forcedoutwardly so that a safe and permanently appearing mounting is provided.

In use an article of jewelry is provided which enables the wearer toeasily change the ornamental stone therein. It is a very desirablefeature to be able to change the stones in articles of jewelry so as toprovide the effect of owning many pieces of jewelry or to match with thecolor of clothing. In the preferred embodiment of a finger ring a numberof stones of different color or type would be available for each ring.If the wearer wanted to change the stone, pressure is applied to thefront of the stone, such as by pushing with the ball of the thumb untilthe tab 40 is forced out of groove 28 and oval band 32 swings open tothe position shown in FIG. 5. Stone '12 is then lifted out through theinside of the ring, and a different stone of the same size is theninserted in oval band 16. Band 32 is then swung back into place untiltab 40 locks in groove 28 whereby the new stone is pressed firmly inplace. This is an extremely easy procedure and yet provides a safe andsecure mounting for the stone.

Oval band 32 also includes another tab 56 adjacent tab 40 but projectingtoward the rear of the ring as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Tab 56 providesan additional method of opening and closing the lock between elements 28 and 40. Tab 56 can be operated by a fingernail pressing thereon toengage the lock, and conversely tab 56 can be operated by slipping afingernail underneath to lift it up to unlock elements 28 and 40.

It is to be understood that the article of jewelry described need not bea finger ring. The inventive concept described hereinbefore of having anornamental element, such as a precious or semi-precious stone, easilyremovable, can be incorporated in other pieces of jewelry, as shown inFIGS. 6 and 7. The mechanism shown in FIGS. 1-4 comprising elements 16,32 and 44 can be incorporated in the mounting 60 of an earring as shownin FIG. 5 on which is mounted the conventional ear attaching means 62. Asimular use could be in a necklace 64 where a plurality of mountings 65embody the invention. Although not shown, the same mounting can be madein a bracelet or brooch. A further use could be in the decorative flap66 of a shoe 68 shown in FIG. 7. The invention heretofore describedcould be incorporated in a mounting 70 in the fiap 66. The operation ofall these further embodiments is in the same manner as previouslydescribed in that the stone 72, as shown in FIG. 7, would be removed bypressing inwardly or involve use of a tab 40 to unlock the oval bands inthe mounting. The invention is understood to be usable in both mens andwomens jewelry. The rings illustrated could be mens rings or womensrings. The invention could also be used in cuff links or tie clips whereit is desired to change the ornamental member.

A further important aspect of this invention is that it allows a numberof articles of jewelry to be worn together with matching stones. This isvery desirable, especially to women, to be able to have matchingjewelry, such as earrings, necklace, and a bracelet. With this inventionit is possible, for example, to select all green stones and place themin all of these articles of jewelry to be worn together as a matchingensemble, even to the extent that similar green stones can also beinserted in a pair of shoes as shown in FIG. 7 and a brooch to be wornsimultaneously.

One of the most important advantages of the invention as describedheretofore is the ease of changing the ornamental element, obviating theneed of a jewelry expert for this purpose. During the change the lockingelements 16, 32, 44 remain hinged together so that they cannot becomeseparated or lost. Further, no special tools are needed, and the entirechange can be accomplished by using the fingers.

The particular embodiments of the invention illustrated and describedare to be considered illustrative only. The present invention includessuch other modifications and equivalents as may readily occur to thoseskilled in the art, within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An article of jewelry comprising a mounting having an opening adaptedto receive an ornamental element therein, a first member secured in saidmounting and having an opening in alignment with said mounting opening,a second member having a shape to fit within said first member andhaving a locking means on one end thereof and a pivot means on the otherend thereof to be pivotally mounted on said first member, said secondmember having an opening for alignment with said first two openings andfurther having a pair of slots located diametrically apart along itssides, tension means having a smaller overall dimension than said secondmember so as to be positioned within said second member and including anopening in alignment with said first and second member openings, saidtension means having a projecting tab on either side thereof to fitrespectively into one of said slots, and portions of said tension meansbending outwardly from said tabs to project beyond said second memberand press against and hold said ornamental element tightly in said firstmember when said first and second members are locked together.

2. An article of jewelry according to claim 1, in which the projectingportions of the tension means extend initally in oppositely arcedsections and then extend further to form end sections that are parallelyspaced from the second member.

3. An article of jewelry according to claim 2, in which the firstmember, the second member and the tension means are oval shaped, theornamental element is an oval shaped solid stone having an inner fiatsurface and a changing peripheral dimension with part greater than saidfirst member opening and the other part able to pass therethrough, andthe projecting portions of said tension means abut substantially alongthe periphery of said flat surface to press said stone against saidfirst member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,182,534 5/1916 Driggott 63291,605,077 11/1926 Shelsey 634 1,712,171 5/ 1929 Rochas 6329 1,934,65311/1933 Arthur 6326UX 2,316,225 4/1943 Hoffmann et al. 6329 2,733,5782/1956 Tucker 6329 FOREIGN PATENTS 376,529 7/ 1932 Great Britain.

F. BARRY SHAY, Primary Examiner

